1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a device for the flexible assembly of a plurality of aerial or so-called overhead cables employed for telephone or electric power transmission by securing them to a suspension cable in such a manner as to endow the assembly with a sufficient degree of flexibility and good mechanical strength. A device of this type can also be employed for fastening a single transmission cable to a suspension cable.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Different types of cable-attachment devices for the purpose just mentioned already exist. However, such devices are not suited to the particular problem which forms the basis of the present invention, namely the installation of aerial telecommunication line systems comprising a number of suspended cables of relatively low strength such as cables comprising conductors of copper or of bronze, or optical fibers.
Thus German Pat. No. DE 901.186 describes an attachment device for fastening together a suspended cable and a suspension cable. This device is constituted by two complementary members, namely a male member and female member respectively. The first member consists of a stirrup-piece which is intended to be placed astride the suspended cable. The second member is designed in the form of a U-shaped cradle to be placed beneath the suspended cable, the side arms of said second member being fixed on the sides of the first member by engagement of hooking means. The advantage of this device lies in the fact that it can be mounted rapidly. However, it is attended by a major drawback in that the attachment of the female member to the male member is unreliable. In actual fact, uncoupling of these two members results in falling of the suspended cable. Furthermore, this attachment device permits fastening of only one suspended cable to the suspension cable. In consequence, it is not possible by means of this device to solve the basic problem of the invention, that is, the construction of telecommunication systems comprising a plurality of suspended cables attached to a suspension cable.
A Swiss Pat. No. DE 425.932, describes an attachment device which is intended to be employed for the same purpose as the device described in the foregoing and is constituted by a single stirrup-piece. This stirrup-piece is intended to be placed astride the suspension cable and has arms provided with recesses which form the necessary passageways for a suspension cable as well as for a suspended cable located beneath this latter. Said stirrup-piece is formed of elastic material and provision is made for a bottom bolt for clamping the lower ends of said two arms after the cables have been positioned within their recesses. However, this device is not practical to install since it is necessary to remove the clamping bolt in order to fit the cables in position. Furthermore, this device is essentially designed for the attachment of a single cable suspended from the suspension cable. It is true that, in the alternative embodiment shown in FIG. 5 of the cited patent, provision is made for the possibility of attaching two suspended cables. However, one of these cables is placed in that case above the suspension cable, which is a highly unsatisfactory solution for relatively low-strength transmission cables. Furthermore, this solution permits the attachment of two suspended cables at most, which does not always solve the problem presented.